The harbor’s Captain is someone everyone respects. He’s spent his whole life with the sea, sailing fishing boats through wind and waves, catching countless fish and supporting many people in the harbor. But in recent years, Captain has had to put down the helm. Every day, he sits on a dock bench, brows furrowed, rubbing his swollen, deformed joints—even holding a hot cup of tea is a struggle.
That day, Popeye, Olive Oyl, and Bluto passed the dock and saw Captain hammering his knee in pain. They hurried over. “Captain, are your joints hurting again?” Popeye asked, concerned. Captain sighed, nodding: “Yeah. This damn rheumatoid arthritis has been torturing me for five years. At first, it was just a little pain, but it got worse and worse—swelling, deformation. I can’t even hold the helm anymore. I’ll never go fishing again in my life.”
Olive Oyl looked at Captain’s wrinkled hands, feeling sorry: “Captain, don’t be too sad. Popeye knows how to help you.” Popeye squatted down, looking closely at Captain’s joints, and said slowly: “Captain, your illness is because your immune patrol ‘made a mistake.’ They’re treating the synovial cells in your joints as enemies, attacking them nonstop. Over time, your joints get damaged—swollen and deformed. That’s rheumatoid arthritis, a hidden ‘joint killer’ in your body.”
“Is there any hope?” A glimmer of hope appeared in Captain’s eyes, and he grabbed Popeye’s hand tightly. Popeye nodded firmly: “There is! Immune tolerance induction therapy can help your immune patrol ‘correct their mistake,’ making them recognize that joint cells are their own people and stop attacking. Scientists will take the antigen of your synovial cells—the ‘own person’ your patrol mixed up—and make a low-dose preparation. Through oral intake or subcutaneous injection, your immune patrol will get used to it slowly and rebuild tolerance.”
He continued explaining: “This treatment is like teaching a confused child right from wrong—you don’t hurt them, and you don’t suppress their nature. It will activate the Treg cells in your body precisely, letting these ‘peacemakers’ control the patrolmen attacking your joints. It keeps the immune system’s defense ability, so you don’t get sick easily, and relieves joint pain at the root, stopping your joints from deforming further.”
“How is this treatment different from the pills I’ve been taking?” Captain asked. Popeye smiled: “The immunosuppressants you took before are like locking up all the immune patrolmen. They ease the pain temporarily, but they lower your immunity, making you catch colds and fevers often. Immune tolerance induction therapy trains those confused patrolmen specifically—correcting their mistakes without affecting the other normal patrolmen. It’s safer and longer-lasting.”
The hope in Captain’s eyes grew brighter, and he held Popeye’s hand tightly: “Great, Popeye! I finally have a chance to hold the helm again and go fishing!” Popeye nodded: “As long as you stick to the treatment, you definitely will. Next episode, we’ll see how immune tolerance induction therapy helps Olive Oyl’s cousin Lena get rid of multiple sclerosis.”